Ba, who scored 16 goals in 34 matches for the Magpies last season, has been subject of intense speculation in the last two weeks, with his bargain £7 million release clause attracting interest.

The Senegal front-man has always maintained his desire to stay at the Sports Direct Arena, but after holding talks with Turkish duo Galatasaray and Fenerbahce over the weekend, his stance appears to have changed.

Desperate for answers, Toon boss Pardew has requested a meeting with Ba this week to finally sort out the player’s future once and for all.

Newcastle have already drawn up a list of possible replacements, including Crystal Palace flyer Wilfried Zaha and Twente poacher Luuk De Jong – who was subject of a failed £8 million bid on Monday – but Pardew has admitted he is hopeful Ba will commit his future to the club.

‘Ever since he signed with us we’ve had the speculation – I don’t think it’s going to go away. We want him to stay, the fans do too, and we hope that will be the case,’ Pardew told the BBC.

It’s an outcome that is looking increasingly unlikely though, with other interested parties expected to show their hand soon, including Manchester City, Liverpool and Bundesliga side Bayern Munich.

All are long-term admirers of Ba, but it’s Tottenham who appear to head the queue, having expressed an interest earlier in the season.

The managerial changes at Spurs have slowed down their transfer business, but Ba still remains high on Daniel Levy’s priority list, especially with Emmanuel Adebayor returning to Manchester City following a season-long loan.

Elsewhere, Newcastle are expected to lodge another bid for Lille full-back Mathieu Debuchy in the next few days, and also kick on in their attempts to land teenager Gael Bigirimana, by making contact with Coventry over a £3 million deal.